November 29, 2012 - Accor’s Pullman brand officially became Australia’s largest 5-star hotel brand today following the re-branding of Sea Temple Resort & Spa Port Douglas. It follows hot on the heels of the re-branding to Pullman of Sea Temple Resort & Spa Palm Cove earlier this week. They join two Pullman hotels in Cairns (Reef Casino and the former Sebel) to give the Pullman brand a prominent position in Tropical North Queensland’s hotel and tourism industry.

The two new additions bring the Pullman network to ten in Australia, making it officially, Australia’s largest 5-star hotel brand – achieved just four years after Pullman debuted in Australia. Pullman overtook Hilton – who have been operating in Australia for 38 years – as the country’s largest upscale brand. The new Pullmans join a global network of over 70 hotels, which is expected to grow to 150 hotels and resorts by 2015.

The latest two re-brandings highlight that Pullman’s resort arm is set to grow as fast as the brand’s city network. The two Far North Queensland Pullman resorts join Pullman Bunker Bay in Western Australia’s Margaret River region, and Pullmans in other major resort locations such as Bali, Phuket, Pattaya, Marrakech and Cannes.

The rebranding of Sea Temple Palm Cove and Port Douglas to Pullman Palm Cove Sea Temple Resort & Spa and Pullman Port Douglas Sea Temple Resort & Spa heralds an exciting time for the brand in the Asia Pacific region as more properties are slated to take on Pullman resort branding in the coming months.

Both of the Pullman Sea Temple resorts have award-winning Mii Spa day spas, numerous dining options, signature lagoon-style pools and breathtaking views, and make an outstanding addition to the Pullman resort portfolio which prides itself on all-encompassing, luxurious retreat style accommodation.

The Pullman resort at Palm Cove features 126-guestrooms ranging from studio suites to 4-bedroom penthouses which have exclusive rooftop spas, plunge pools and BBQ facilities. The resort’s Mii Spa day spa is a favourite of celebrities such as Kylie Minogue (they shut down the spa for 5-hours for her exclusive use in 2009), and features six treatment rooms and a ‘local touches’ menu which draws upon local, historic remedies.

Less than 60 minutes north of Cairns at the secluded end of 4 Mile Beach and just 5km from the town centre, Pullman Port Douglas Sea Temple Resort & Spa is set in 10 acres of manicured grounds and surrounds an intricate lagoon pool, whereby some guestrooms have direct swim-in, swim-out access.

Most of the 194-gustrooms and suites offer exceptional views of the pool, gardens and golf course and all come with fully equipped kitchens, separate bedrooms and bathrooms, private balconies and terraces and internet access.

Only steps away, the famed Sea Temple Golf Club features an 18-hole championship links-style golf course and is rated in the Top 50 public access courses in Australia. Guests can enjoy a world-class golfing experience and impressive Queenslander-style clubhouse, framed by tropical rainforests and stunning mountain backdrops.

The Pullman signature of providing exceptional facilities for meetings and events lends itself perfectly to Pullman Palm Cove, as the resort recently unveiled its new purpose built Garden Pavilion event centre which can hold up to 100 delegates. Fitted with state-of-the-art smart screens, black-out blinds, internal bathrooms, a kitchenette and ample storage facilities, the Garden Pavilion adds to the resort’s already outstanding conference and event offerings which consist of four specialist conference rooms which can hold up to 150 people.

Pullman Port Douglas Sea Temple Resort & Spa also boasts outstanding conference facilities and can host up to 220 delegates. Event locations such as the resort’s three light-filled conference rooms, the resort’s Lagoon View Terrace and private Boardwalk provide unique locations for memorable conferences, events and cocktail parties.

Simon McGrath, Chief Operating Officer of Accor Pacific said growing the Pullman resort collection was an important step in the brand’s expansion.

“It is fitting that two such high-quality resorts should establish Pullman as Australia’s leading 5-star brand,” he said.

“The Pullman resorts in Palm Cove and Port Douglas are two of Australia’s finest and they will benefit considerably by being part of Pullman’s rapidly growing international 5-star network.

“We will be looking to grow the conference and incentive market into Tropical North Queensland, as well as growing domestic leisure and international business into the region.

“It’s not all that long ago that US President Bill Clinton and celebrities such as Kate Hudson, Elle Macpherson, John Travolta and Tom Cruise put Port Douglas on the global map and we look forward to playing a major role in reviving interest in both Port Douglas and Palm Cove. They are idyllic resort locations that are amongst the most attractive in the world, and we believe we can really build up their profile and performance in both existing and new source markets. There is great potential in Asia with its growing market of upwardly mobile, experienced travellers, and with Pullman an increasingly prominent brand across the region, there is great opportunity to leverage that and drive future business into the region.”

While a relatively new brand in Australia, Pullman has a rich heritage in the world of travel, having revolutionised long-distance accommodation and dining on American trains in the mid-19th century. Pullman railway carriages were known as Palaces on Wheels, and following their impact on the American travel scene were introduced into the UK and Europe. Accor revived the name for a network of upscale hotels in 2007.

About Pullman
Pullman is the upscale international hotel brand of Accor, the world’s leading hotel operator, present in 92 countries with over 4,400 hotels and 145,000 employees. Located in the main regional and international cities and in prime tourist destinations, Pullman Hotels & Resorts is principally designed to cater for the requirements of cosmopolitan, seasoned travelers. The brand’s four and five-star establishments provide an extensive range of tailored services, access to groundbreaking technologies, including a new approach to organizing events: meetings, seminars and upscale incentive events. At Pullman hotels, customers can choose between being independent or be given a helping hand by staff available around the clock.The Pullman network has more than 60 hotels in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia-Pacific and Latin America.Our objective is to have 150 hotels around the world by 2015-2020. Pullman, like most of brands within Accor's portfolio, is proud to offer the Le Club Accor hotels(R) loyalty program. Further information concerning the Pullman hotels is available on www.pullmanhotels.com.

About Accor
Accor, the world's leading hotel operator and market leader in Europe, is present in 90 countries with more than 4,200 hotels and 500,000 rooms. Accor's broad portfolio of hotel brands - Sofitel, Pullman, MGallery, Novotel, Suite Novotel, Mercure, Adagio, ibis, all seasons/ibis Styles, Etap Hotel/Formule 1/ibis budget, hotelF1 and Motel 6 - provide an extensive offer from luxury to budget. With 145,000 employees worldwide, the Group offers to its clients and partners nearly 45 years of know-how and expertise.